To: Chief Executive Officers of All National Banks and Federal Savings Associations, Department and Division Heads, All Examining Personnel, and Other Interested Parties

Description: Final Rule—Technical and Conforming Changes

Summary

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) published a final rule in the Federal Register today to implement several technical and conforming changes to the OCC’s Annual Stress Test regulation (12 CFR 46). The final rule changes the range of possible “as-of” dates used in the global market shock component to conform to changes recently made by the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to its stress testing regulations. The final rule also changes the transition period for an institution that becomes an over $50 billion covered institution. Finally, the final rule makes certain technical changes to clarify the requirements of the OCC’s stress testing regulation.

The rule will be effective on March 26, 2018.

Note for Community Banks

The annual stress test under section 165(i) of the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act applies only to national banks and federal savings associations with more than $10 billion in assets.

Highlights

The final rule

extends the range of possible “as-of” dates used in the trading and counterparty default component of the annual stress tests by three months. The previous rule stated that the as-of date may occur between January 1 and March 1 of the calendar year of the stress test. The final rule extends this window to incorporate the prior three months, so that the new window would be October 1 through March 1.

extends the transition process for certain covered national banks and federal savings associations that cross the $50 billion asset threshold.

makes technical and linguistic changes to the OCC’s stress testing regulation in order to promote clarity. The final rule removes certain obsolete transition provisions. The final rule also changes the defined term “over $50 billion covered institution” to “$50 billion or over covered institution” to be more precise.